CSX line reopens after Harpers Ferry bridge fire (updated)

Hi-rail vehicle and workers on bridge at night

HARPERS FERRY, W.Va. — CSX has reopened one track of its two-track main line at Harpers Ferry, W.Va., about 3:30 a.m. today (Tuesday, June 25) and expected the other to be reopened by midday following Monday’s fire on the bridge across the Potomac River. The Hagerstown Herald-Mail reports railroad spokesman Bryan Tucker wrote in an […]

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Supreme Court to review decision blocking Uinta Basin project

Map showing proposed rail route in Utah

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Monday to review the appeals court ruling blocking construction of the Uinta Basin Railway, the Associated Press reports. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia last year struck down Surface Transportation Board approval of the 88-mile rail project in a remote portion of eastern Utah. […]

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Bridge fire shuts down CSX main line at Harpers Ferry, W.Va. (updated)

CSX logo

HARPERS FERRY, W.Va. —  CSX’s double-track main line at Harpers Ferry has been shut down after a reported bridge deck fire this afternoon (Monday, June 24), leading to a cancellation of Amtrak’s Capitol Limited and disrupting freight service and MARC commuter rail operations. Eyewitness photos looking east from the original Baltimore & Ohio train station […]

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News & Products for the week of June 24th 2024

Line art of cream and green diesel locomotive

News & Products for the week of June 24th 2024 Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of June 24th 2024. […]

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BNSF bridge on South Dakota-Iowa state line collapses

Woman standing in front of collapsed railroad bridge and flooding-swollen river

NORTH SIOUX CITY, S.D. —  A portion of a BNSF Railway bridge connecting North Sioux City, S.D., and Sioux City, Iowa, collapsed Sunday night, as heavy rains and flooding continue to take a toll on the area. “We have been monitoring the region through our increased track inspections and had not been operating over the […]

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Federal government issues final rule requiring railroads to provide hazardous-material information to first responders

Black cloud of smoke above town

WASHINGTON — The federal government has issued its final rule requiring railroads to provide real-time electronic information on hazardous material to first responders in the event of a derailment or other incident. The rule from the Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is one of many regulatory actions spurred by last year’s […]

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Santa Fe freight house in Atchison, Kans.

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The Santa Fe’s freight depot at Atchison, Kans., is typical of those found in small cities. Inbound boxcars were unloaded along the single track at the dock, with trucks loading on the other side of the structure. Note the old-style grade crossing warning device in the foreground. Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe photo […]

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BNSF Railway adds wind screen on bridge in Abo Canyon

FORT WORTH, Texas – BNSF Railway’s engineering crews have added a 1,300-foot wind fence to block the pesky prevailing wind on a bridge in Abo Canyon on its Southern Transcon in New Mexico. The Clovis Subdivision bridge, at milepost 874.2 near the west end of the canyon, experiences more severe winds due to the terrain, […]

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BNSF Railway’s automotive facilities recognized with awards

BNSF Railway logo

FORT WORTH, Texas – BNSF Railway announced two of its automotive facilities, operated by service partner Inter-Rail Group, were recognized as some of the best in North America by the Association of American Railroads. The awards were accepted recently at the Damage Freight Prevention Convention in Minneapolis. In a news release dated June 11, 2024, […]

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Weekly U.S. rail traffic remains ahead of 2023 levels

Weekly table showing U.S. carload traffic by commodity type, plus overall intermodal volume

WASHINGTON —Weekly U.S. rail traffic continued to show overall gains compared to 2023 in the latest statistics from the Association of American Railroads, thanks to the strength of intermodal volume. For the week ending June 15, overall traffic was 493,138 carloads and intermodal units, a 3.4% increase over the corresponding week a year ago. That […]

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